You're the Perfect Love Song
by GrownKitten6390
Summary: 5 years after graduating from UA High, class 1A is as close as ever. Pro Heros in various fields, keeping in touch is now an active feat outside of the standard friend groups. Jiro, though, is struggling to deal with work stress, a recent break-up, & a nosy man-whore of a best friend, Jiro has to deal with a lot. But an 8-year-long rumor will risk her friendships to the break point
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"Kyoka-chan, over here!" Uraraka was standing over the table waving as Jiro made her entrance into the restaurant. Class 1-A had decided to organize a reunion at one of the restaurant/bars in the city in order for them to 'catch up,' as Ashido had enthusiastically explained to Jiro over email. The five years since graduation hadn't really torn the class apart, so Jiro figured this was just a way for all of them to drag out the more anti-social ones out of the shadows for a public drink.

Jiro waved to the table, ready to make her way over when a heavy hand landed on her shoulder. "What happened to 'we don't have time for these silly gatherings right now,' eh, Kyoka?" Kaminari said with a wide grin. Five years had done him well, much to Jiro's dismay. The hero Chargebolt had grown considerably during their high school years, now standing at 175 cm tall and packing quite a bit more muscle on in the process. The thing that threw the entire class off, though, was Kaminari's sudden charm and charisma he had developed after graduation. Dorky Denki had made headlines for being quite the ladies' man in the past few years, and of course Jiro heard the brunt of those woes from Kaminari himself as he dealt with the backlash coming at him from his agency. Sometimes Jiro couldn't help but wonder what these women saw in him, as much as he whined to her over the phone.

"Pfft," Jiro shrugged off his hand and playfully shot him a smirk, "I was threatened, I swear. Otherwise-"

"You'd be sitting at home all alone playing some god-forbidden depressing song you're working on." Jiro frowned as Kaminari's grin grew. "Am I right?" Instead of humoring him with a verbal response, Jiro just shoved him away by the arm and moved towards the table with their old classmates. Kaminari's obnoxious cackle followed close behind.

Taking a seat near the end of the table next to Asui and Hagakure, Jiro couldn't help but be glad she agreed to Ashido's pleas. She had missed her little crew of girl friends. The women of 1-A definitely saw each other more often than anyone else in their class (sans significant others, of course), but due to the increase of several crazy cases back-to-back their bi-weekly meetups had recently fallen by the wayside. "How is the missing person's case going, Kyoka-chan?" Asui asked as she nursed her juice. "I remember you were stressing about it a couple weeks ago."

Jiro groaned loudly, resting her chin in her hand and leaning her elbow on the table while twirling one of her earphone jacks with her free hand. "A string of dead ends! I've been working with the police to find this guy for months! And it just seems like the missing people list just keeps growing.."

Kaminari sat in the empty seat next to her, placing a beer in front of Jiro. "Isn't that the case you've been getting hounded about?" He inquired before taking a swig of his own beer. "Kyoka's been taking her frustration out on poor bystanders the entire time." Jiro shot him a glare, but that didn't deter Kaminari from continuing. "Dude, her boyfriend even got fed up with her nagging-"

Everyone jumped at the sound of a hand slapping onto the table. All eyes turned to Jiro as she looked at Kaminari, ready to kill. The poor guy at least had the audacity to look sheepish. Yaoyorozu, who had been sitting on Kaminari's other side, realized Jiro wasn't calming down and tried to divert the conversation away from the tension. Iida awkwardly joined in, changing the topic to something recent that happened at his family's agency. Jiro just stood up, beer in hand, and stormed her way down to the other end of the table near Uraraka, Midoriya, and Todoroki.

Kaminari sighed in defeat, taking a larger swig of his beer to hide his discomfort. After all these years, he still seemed to flawlessly push Jiro's buttons without intention. He would have to apologize later to her once she was able to catch up with their friends and calm down. "Still as tactless as ever, Kaminari-kun," Hagakure shrugged good-naturedly. "Some things just never change!"

Shaking off his guilt, Kaminari leaned his elbow on the table and rested his chin in his hand with a grin. "Oh come on, I'd like to think I've changed a little bit since high school. Surely I've at least become a little cooler in your eyes? Or at least more dependable?"

"Well," Asui chimed in, "We can always depend on you to make Kyoka-chan mad." The three of them laughed at the situation, happily reminiscing about old times. Jiro, though, couldn't help but sigh in exasperation as she watched Asui and Hagakure fall prey to Kaminari's newly acquired charm. It was his way to make people warm up to him, overlooking any of his usual crass, that Jiro absolutely refused to introduce him to any of her female co-workers. The last time she did, the poor woman had ended up on page 9 of the local paper and Kaminari had been scolded for fraternizing with a newly hired sidekick from a rival agency. Nope, Jiro knew better than to leave Kaminari alone with a female for any undetermined length of time.

It was around eleven when the laughter and banter began to die down. Most of the old members of 1-A still had patrol shifts that night or had to report to work in a few hours. Midoriya, Uraraka, Iida, and Sero were some of the first to leave. Bakugo dragged a wasted Kirishima home not long after. In small groups they filtered out, and Jiro stood up along with Todoroki and Mineta ready to leave. Kaminari must have spotted her in his peripheral because he bolted up from his seat and rushed over to her.

"Hey Kyoka...I'm sorry about earlier. I just-"

"It's fine," Jiro choked out, "you didn't mean to be hurtful, I know. Besides, you were right anyway…" Kaminari frowned at her confession. It always hurt him to see Jiro so hard on herself.

"Hey, I told you that guy was too chill for you anyway," He snorted, "you need someone a bit more thick-headed to deal with your crap."

"Oh, for the love of-"

"I'm serious!" Kaminari grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around to face away from him, "I saw the way you and Todoroki were hitting it off tonight. He's definitely thick-headed, that's for sure."

Jiro huffed, "That's no good measure. All the guys we know are like that. Including your dumb ass!"

"Which is why you need my help! Takes an idiot's help to snag an idiot!"

"Don't compare Todoroki to-"

"Nope, you started it!" Kaminari laughed and shoved Jiro forward towards where Todoroki, Mineta, and Ashido were waiting at the entrance. "Now go mingle! It's no fun if I'm the only one getting laid tonight."

Jiro blanched at the insinuation, "You're disgusting!"

Kaminari turned away from her and back towards where Hagakure was waiting near the side entrance. "You love me and you know it!" He laughed, "Go get a drink! I expect a report on my desk first thing tomorrow, young lady!" Jiro groaned as she ignored his quips and headed out the restaurant with the little group that had waited.

"Everything ok between you and Kaminari now?" Todoroki asked as Jiro approached. She just shrugged and walked on ahead, wordlessly letting Ashido link their arms as the acid user requested karaoke be their next stop. Maybe, in some small bizarro alternate dimension, Kaminari was right. It had been a few months since her break up, maybe it was time to start looking again? As Ashido dragged her along down the road, Jiro couldn't help but think she let that damn electric user influence her too much. For crying out loud, he was going home with Hagakure Toru! Jiro didn't even realize that Hagakure even _had_ Kaminari on her radar.

Not to mention his weird fascination with her love life! For years he would act as her weirdo cheerleader, even going so far as playing the unwanted wingman. Jiro couldn't stop the blush of embarrassment at the memory of Kaminari using his charms to get the phone number of the girl who worked at a alternative clothing store Jiro shopped at...and the humiliation when the girl was shocked to find out it was Jiro who liked her and not the dorky yet charismatic blond. 'But Mie and I did last for a good year...that wouldn't have happened if Kaminari didn't stick his nose in.' Thinking back on it, Kaminari had helped her hook up with 3 of her 5 last relationships. God, that boy was nosy.

Ashido pulled them all to a private karaoke booth, claiming how she needed victims to her singing since Kirishima and Sero were MIA. "You know who has a surprisingly good singing voice? Sato!" Ashido proclaimed as she and Mineta searched through the available songs. "Sero and I got him to come with us once after work...I swear he bewitched all the staff that walked past our booth! It's not fair!"

Mineta gave up on looking for a song with a groan, "No, what isn't fair is Kaminari's betrayal! He's been getting more action than me lately!" Torodoki, Jiro, and Ashido all rolled their eyes at their short friend. "I'm serious! He was my ride or die! Now I'm left all high and dry for every pair of D-cups that he so much as hears about! Doesn't even pass me a number!"

"That's because you'll scare off any woman who comes within ten feet of you," Jiro sneered. "At least Denki pretends to be a decent human being." Mineta gasped in insult. "There's a reason all of us have had relationships since high school, Mineta."

Ashido loaded a few songs into the queue before sliding next to Todoroki. "Speaking of...any luck with you-know-who, Sho-kun?" He just sighed and shook his head, letting himself be consoled by the acid user. "Aww baby boy, I told you how hard it would be to fall for a straight man."

Todoroki snorted and picked up the remote to order a few drinks from the staff. If he was going receive this pity party again, he needed more alcohol in his system. "Please, Mina, tell me again how horrible I am for wanting him. I haven't heard it nearly enough, yet." Ashido huffed and waved him off. If he was going to be snarky, then there was no use digging for progress. Todoroki's love life was transparent, but he definitely wasn't the venting type. The only reason Ashido even knew of his plights was because he had shown up at her door one morning on the verge of tears and looking all too ready to jump from the nearest rooftop. Apparently, Todoroki didn't know anyone else at the time who was out-and-proud gay in their friend group and ran to Ashido immediately, needing the support of a friend who could understand. Ashido never hid her sexuality, even in high school, so she understood why he sought her out. If nothing else, it brought the two of them closer after graduation and Ashido wouldn't trade their current friendship for the world.

"You're way too hard on yourself, Sho-kun!" Ashido patted his leg, "I just worry, that's all. Especially since you haven't even told him how you feel-"

"Oh my god, enough of this teen drama!" Jiro groaned, "We get it, our love lives suck!"

"Hey," Ashido interrupted, "I got a steady bed warmer!"

Jiro rolled her eyes, "Ok, so all of us except Mina aren't getting laid on the regular! Can we just drink and embarrass ourselves while singing already?" The four of them all laughed, forgetting their woes for a bit longer as they immersed themselves in each other's presence and bad pop music.

 _Daaaadddy shark doo do doo doo…_

Jiro groaned as she reached for her phone, her body loudly protesting the movement. Damn Kaminari and his stupid sense of humor! How many times had she changed her ringtone only for him to sneakily change it to whatever made him laugh that day? Putting the receiver to her ear, she croaked out a grumpy, "...What?"

"Morning my Queen of Darkness!" Kaminari's far too cheerful tone blasted into her ear.

"...I'm going to kill you."

"It's eleven A.M. and I have yet to hear about your exploits from last night!" He screeched, ignoring the all too common threat, "Midoriya and I are having lunch with Todoroki in thirty minutes and I need to know if I should high five him or punch him! Give me details!"

"...Ho."

"I prefer the term 'male giglio,' but I'll let that slide." Completely undeterred by Jiro's sleep addled brain, Kaminari continued, "I'm serious, Kyoka! Todoroki is cool but I gotta know if he did you dirty, or did you _dirty~!"_

"...You are absolutely disgusting." Jiro huffed, resigned to dealing with the waking world. "And he didn't do me dirty, you freak. No one slept with anyone."

"What!?" The mock offense in Kaminari's tone was easy for Jiro to pick up on as she roamed her room looking for her sweatpants. "Jiro Kyoka, did you seriously not even try!? Why? Torodoki was into you last night!"

Finding a pair of clean sweatpants amongst the sheets on her bed, Jiro snorted. "I'm one hundred percent certain he was not."

"Bullshit! As much as you were chatting up? What makes you think he wouldn't-"

"I don't have a dick, Denki."

A beat of silence. "...Really?"

"Yes! Now back off!"

"Wait," Kaminari's rustling over the phone could be heard as he shifted in his seat, "REALLY!?"

"..."

"...I should have fucking known! He's too damn pretty!"

"What are you? My Gay BFF™?"

"Best one you'll ever have!"

"...Ok, Captain Hetero," Jiro stifled a laugh. Kaminari always did this: annoy her, anger her, then make her laugh all within the span of minutes. The power he had over her emotions majority of the time was amazing. "But seriously, back off. Todoroki has his own issues, don't try and add our incompatible love lives into the mix."

Jiro heard Kaminari's huff of defeat. "Fiiiiine, but we have go to a bar soon, then. Just us. We need to find you someone to let off a bit of steam."

"Or we could just go and hang like friends do?" Jiro quipped, "Because not everything is about getting laid, Denki."

"Ah, my naïve, Kyoka. Believe what you want. Anyway, I have to hop off...gotta get lunch and all that. Talk to you later, ok?" Jiro agreed and the two promised to make plans for the bar at a later date before she hung up.

After placing her phone back by her bed, she walked out to the kitchen to prepare coffee and begrudgingly start her day. Thankfully, she had the day off so Jiro could enjoy being lazy. Jiro floated around the kitchen, humming to herself as she waited for the smell of coffee to fill the room. She thrown out of her reverie, though, when the doorbell rang. Making her way over to the door, Jiro couldn't help but wonder who it could be. Maybe Ashido, since she had the day off as well. All thought processes halted when she opened the door to reveal the last person she wanted to see, though.

"...Hi Kyoka-san."

"Ojiro…?"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Jiro fiddled with her coffee in front of her, looking anywhere in the room but at the man across from her. Ojiro sat with his posture straight, a cup of green tea steeping on the table before him. His tail lay calmly at his side, betraying nothing of Ojiro's emotions. Calm, collected, sturdy...all the surface-level mannerisms Jiro knew about him were on display. Nothing he did revealed the man she had dated for two years.

"You look well," He spoke first, of course. Ojiro was always one to get straight to the point of any conflict. The tightening of his lips betraying the discomfort he felt, Ojiro took a sip of his tea before continuing. "I hope I'm not interrupting your day?"

' _You're too needy.'_ One of the many harsh things Jiro had said to him flashed through her head. So many things she didn't mean…

"Of course not, Mashirao-san." Jiro forced a small smile to try to put him at ease. Yes, he had broken up with her, but that didn't mean she should make this encounter harder than it needed to be. Ojiro deserved much better from her. "And thank you. I would say the same, but you have always adjusted well. I expected no less from you."

A chuckle came from him. That was a positive thing, right? It died on his lips quickly, though, so Jiro didn't really know how to read it. "I won't take up too much of your time…"

' _Why do I always have to pay attention to you?'_ Jiro shook the stray thought from her head. She had been so cruel to him.

"...I really just wanted to ask if you still had a few things of mine." Ojiro sighed and leaned back in his chair, his true emotions finally showing through. "I've been looking for my compilation of jazz CDs and can't seem to find them anywhere. I was wondering if I forgot them here?"

Jiro bit her cheek to stop herself from saying anything embarrassing and just nodded. She stood up and walked into the living room, grabbing a stack of CDs before returning to the kitchen table. "Um...sorry, I noticed you left them a while ago. I just...I didn't-I couldn't…"

Ojiro stood up and took the stack from her, a small understanding smile gracing his features. "I get it, Kyoka-san. I know you're still upset about how things turned out… I am, too. But we can be adults about this; it just didn't work out." Jiro didn't know when, but she had begun to tremble. Everything she had repressed the last couple months had begun to rise to the surface, and Jiro couldn't hold it at bay anymore.

"I was so horrible to you," she sniffed. "You have been nothing but supportive, honest, and caring. I took everything out on you and I'm sorry." If Ojiro was surprised by her admission he hid it well. Instead, he placed the CDs down on the table and wrapped his arms around Jiro's shoulders. He pulled her close to him and rested his chin on her head as her body was wracked with silent sobs.

"I wasn't exactly the most understanding, either, Kyoka-san. I don't exactly work in the same field of hero work you do...I didn't even try to take note the stresses caused by your job." He nuzzled the crown of her head with his cheek, savoring Jiro's familiar scent. Oh, how he missed falling asleep with her in his arms.

Jiro's muffled laughter brought him out of his reverie. "You really should stop trying to take the blame, Mashirao-san. It makes me feel more guilty knowing I've turned you into a martyr." The two shared a self-deprecating laugh before being interrupted by Jiro's phone. The two separated and Jiro ran to her room to retrieve it. "Jiro speaking."

"Jiro-chan?" Hagakure's voice shocked the earphone jack hero. "I'm so sorry to call you out of the blue, but do you have a moment?"

Asking for her to hold for a moment, Jiro walked back out into the main area where Ojiro was. He was in the kitchen washing their cups with a level of familiarity that Jiro hadn't seen in months. "I'm so sorry, Mashirao-san, it's Hagakure-chan. I don't mean to be rude-"

Ojiro dried his hands and grabbed his stack of CDs once more. "I understand, I have to go anyway. This has been...enlightening."

Jiro snorted, "That's one word for it." Her shoulders released tension she didn't realize she was carrying. "It was good to see you."

"You too, Kyoka-san." Ojiro said as he made his way to the door. Once she heard the door close, Jiro settled onto the couch and brought the phone back up to her ear. Hagakure must have heard the exchange, because her usual bubbly personally muted in concern.

"I didn't mean to interrupt you and your guest, Jiro-chan."

"Don't worry about it," Jiro easily dismissed it, "You saved me from a long and awkward post-break up visit. What's up?"

The silence on Hagakure's end should have alarmed Jiro more, especially once the invisible woman began to speak. "I was wondering...if Kaminari-kun has a steady girlfriend?" Jiro internally groaned. She had hoped to avoid this talk. "It's not too important right now! It's just...we had such a good time yesterday and I never expected to enjoy his company so much-"

"We're not fifteen, Hagakure-chan. I know you two fucked last night," Jiro deadpanned and Hagakure balked. "As a matter-of-fact, I also know that Denki doesn't...do relationships." Hagakure let out a sound akin to disappointment. "I'm not trying to be mean, but that's just how he is. I would call him if I were you and just lay everything out in the open-"

"I would if he would return my calls!" Oh no. "I'm sorry, Jiro-chan, I don't mean to take it out on you. It's just that we hit off so well…I mean, he's changed quite a bit since high school…"

Jiro sighed, hating this conversation more and more. "Look, I don't even know why you called me for this. Denki is pretty straightforward with his intentions, Hagakure-san. It's not a secret that he's not exactly the sweetest guy towards the female populus."

Hagakure's groan was like a harsh dismissal. "I get that, but I figured that as his best friend you'd want him to settle down. Or at least call back an old classmate-"

"An old classmate he slept with."

"-as a damn courtesy! I'm not so interested in him that I'd hound him all day. I'm trying to be decent here."

Jiro splayed herself out over the couch, "You know, you're a lot bitchier than I remember." At Hagakure's gasp of indignation, Jiro couldn't help but laugh. "Look, I can't exactly tell Denki to do anything...he's Denki. He's always been as difficult as he is stupid. At least give him twenty four hours before you get all clingy."

"I'm not clingy!" Ignoring the outburst, Jiro shifted the phone from one ear to the other.

"You called his supposed best friend to get him to return your calls...and it hasn't even been twelve hours." The silence on the other end of the phone alerted Jiro that Hagakure realized the truth in her words. "It's a little crazy, Hagakure-chan."

Hagakure sighed over the receiver. "Ok, you're right. But can you blame me? Kaminari-kun is quite the talent in bed. I'm sure you understand that!"

"Ew, no, why would I want to understand that?" Jiro cringed at the thought.

"Because I'm sure you two hook up all the time," Hagakure stated bluntly, "Like you said, he doesn't do relationships. I figured you're pretty solid on the benefits with him as a friend."

Jiro's blood ran cold. "...is that what you think?"

"Wait, it's not?"

"NO! He's my friend, sans benefits, dammit!" Jiro's vision began to bleed red, "Does everyone else think this?!" Hagakure's mumbled 'yes' had Jiro rising from the couch and pacing in a rage. "What the fuck!? We have never-"

' _I swear, sometimes you treat Kaminari-san like your boyfriend and me like your roommate.'_

She couldn't breathe. Hanging up on Hagakure, Jiro fell to the floor clutching at her head in a panic. Was she really that poor of a girlfriend to Ojiro? That statement of his had led to a pretty nasty fight. One of their worst right before Ojiro called it quits. What if he thought...what if he was the same as Hagakure? If so, she was even more vile than she thought. Her neglect of him had only let such a nasty rumor fester…

Before she even knew what she was doing, Jiro was picking up her phone. A familiar grunt answered on the third ring.

"Hey...can we talk a moment?" A sigh on the other end of the line gave Jiro all the answer she needed before she began to put on jeans and a jacket.

"Be here in fifteen. I got shit to do later." Came the the grunt reply through the receiver. Jiro answered in the affirmative before hanging up and rushing outside. The walk was rather simple, thankfully, and was only a few streets away. Jiro rushed up to the apartment complex she knew rather well, she took the stairs two at a time and through the familiar halls only scratching to a stop in front of her target door. Knocking rather loudly, she waited for the all too knowing stomps of her friend's feet on the other side of the door.

The door swung open to reveal a rather disgruntled Bakugo clad only in a pair of gray boxers and his signature skull tank. "I thought you had stuff to do later? You look like you just crawled out of bed." Jiro snickered as she pushed past him and into the apartment. Removing her shoes at the walkway, she made her way to the dining room table watching as Bakugo sluggishly followed her.

"I _was_ in bed, you fucking neanderthal," Bakugo huffed as he passed Jiro and into the kitchen to prepare come coffee for them both. "Unlike you nine-to-five bastards, I'm on graveyard duty this week."

Jiro's smirk fell at that. "I can leave, Bakugo. I didn't mean to throw your sleep out of whack."

"As if," Bakugo fought a yawn, "Ei is in and out of the place keeping me up anyway. Shitty hair has no idea how to be quiet." Jiro fought a snicker futilely at that, earning a glare from Bakugo. "Ha?"

Waving off his irritation, Jiro just smiled. "Nothing, just shocked you can sound so...domestic. Lord Explosion Murder: the Every Man."

"I was fucking fifteen, you bitch!"

"And you picked the most headbanger name possible!"

"Better than your lame-ass ' _Earphone Jack_ '!"

"Which was approved on the first try! Face it, Bakugo, you're shit at names!"

"And you have shit taste in friends!"

"Says my friend," Jiro smirked at him. "Crazy attracts crazy, Bakugo." Bakugo placed a cup of coffee in front of her as well as some cream and sugar. She calmly poured a bit of creamer into her coffee as she fought a cringe in watching Bakugo destroy the taste of his coffee with all the creamer and sugar he loaded it with. Might as well just eat the sugar sans coffee…

"Speaking of crazy," Bakugo took a sip of said sugary sludge looking quite pleased with himself. "Why the fuck did you call me out of nowhere? You _never_ call me."

Jiro snorted, "I can't just stop by and see you and Kirishima?"

"Not sober, no." Jiro just balked at him. Ok, maybe she spent one too many drunken nights bugging her friends. "Now what the fuck is it, so I can get my shit done."

' _Blunt as always.'_ Jiro sighed after taking a swig of her coffee. "Do I cling to Denki too much?"

"Ha?" Bakugo's eyebrow rose curiously, "That's what's got your panties in a fucking bunch? So Pikachu is your fucking right hand, who gives a shit?"

Jiro frowned, "Apparently it's enough of a problem to be a damn rumor! Hagakure even thinks I'm fucking him!"

The ensuing coughing fit from Bakugo would have rendered anyone else into giggles at the dramatics of it. "What the fuck?!"

"That was my reaction!"

"That's fucking disgusting!"

"That's what _I_ said!"

Bakugo groaned and shoved his coffee away from him, "I could've lived my entire life without picturing that bastard getting a hard on for you. I'm officially sick."

Jiro gave him a blank stare. "...I don't know if that insult was for me or Denki, you ass."

"Both!"

"You're definitely an asshole."

Bakugo just shrugged, knowing that was just common fact. He had calmed down a lot from high school, but Bakugo never strayed from his core personality. His bad attitude had just been mastered and he knew when to reign it in and when to unleash it now. "Why the fuck does it matter, anyway? You're not snogging the bastard and it's not like it's keeping you from…" Ah. It clicked. "That tailed bastard didn't break up with you because of this did he!?"

Jiro shook her head frantically, "No! It...it wasn't the main reason! I was just a shit girlfriend! I'd be lying, though, if I said it wasn't a source of tension...I just thought it was because Mashirao-san was insecure. But if this rumor had reached him, I can't say he didn't have a reason to feel insecure…"

Bakugo stood up to go dump his coffee in the sink, officially sick to the stomach. "Then the bastard should have talked to you about it. And Pikachu should know some damn boundaries! Fucking hell...you'd think he'd be careful not to do shit to fuck up the life of the only damn woman who will put up with his shitty personality!"

"It's not Denki's fault, Bakugo-"

"That he can go stick his dick in every hole from here to Osaka, then come around and be clingy with you? That's fucking toxic, Jiro."

"No, it's not. We don't even act like a couple-"

"And yet here you are, crying to me about how he's a part of the reason your relationship with the tail bastard fell apart."

Jiro shut up at that. _Did_ she and Kaminari act that way? He definitely had a hand in a lot of her relationships, but that was just him being a good wingman. They spent a lot of time together, too, but that was just because Kaminari was a social person. Nothing they did was based on anything romantic. It was platonic...but they never did determine what was too much, did they? What crossed the line of too clingy or TMI?

"If you're gonna get all retrospective on me, just leave." Bakugo growled. "I got errands and shit. Unless you wanna be here when Ei gets back? He can handle your weirdo love crisis better than me."

Jiro shook her head, partially to pull herself from her thoughts. "No, you've helped me out...in your own rude Bakugo way." She ignored the huff that came from him. "I'll get out of your hair. Thanks, Bakugo."

Bakugo just waved her off. He walked her to the door, taking note of her calm demeanor. Her calmness was always a dangerous thing. It usually meant hyper focused or emotional retreat. Unfortunately, he was never good at deciphering which was which. He just assumed her to be alright for now and watched her head towards the stairs.

What wasn't alright, though, was that damn rumor. Jiro always kept her head down and focused on her own stuff, so to hear that people from their alma mater were spreading such a toxic story unsettled him a bit. Especially since he knew it was because of Kaminari's failure of respecting boundaries.

Fucking gossiping idiots.

* * *

A month after the last class meetup, Bakugo found himself reluctantly following Kirishima into a dumpster dive bar. "What the hell am I even doing here?" Bakugo seethed. "I don't even fucking drink!"

"Yeah, but I do, Katsuki," Kirishima said as he pushed the call button to request a waiter. Tonight was Kirishima's monthly hangout with Sero and Kaminari at the local bar near their agencies. Bakugo normally wasn't part of these rendezvous, but he had just returned from a rather trying mission. It hadn't gone well...at all. The case been coming to a close by capturing a rather nasty villain, but they'd been set up-caught in a trap. There were casualties, which was always hard for Bakugo to deal with. Whenever these kinds of missions came around, the poor guy would cling to Kirishima as if he were his life support. This time around was no different. Kirishima was not going to cancel on Kaminari and Sero, though, so he dragged his poor partner out of the house for the second time in as many days. "Please humor me for a bit?" Kirishima patted Bakugo's thigh under the table, "Just a couple drinks and then we'll go home."

Bakugo snorted as he spotted Sero and Kaminari approach from the entrance. "You fucking owe me, Ei. I don't want to be around that damn whore longer than I have to be." Kirishima sent him one of his charming smiles, making Bakugo's heart skip a beat. Coughing to hide his growing blush, Bakugo pulled Kirishima's hand from his thigh and intertwined their hands together. Kirishima's smile only grew at the gesture, but he turned to Sero and Kaminari as they sat down at the table.

"I already got us a pitcher, just gotta order food," Kirishima said to them after they all exchanged the usual pleasantries. The waiter had yet to arrive so Sero went into a story about an event he and Todoroki had recently attended. Kaminari's brain drifted off, having heard the story on the way over to the bar. He poured himself a glass of beer while relishing in the company of his friends. It was moments like these that reminded him of high school-the group of them relaxing in the common room of Heights Alliance as other students buzzed about around them. The sense of nostalgia is why he loved coming to Kirishima's hangouts; he wasn't expected to be Chargebolt, Japan's number 5...just Kaminari Denki. He appreciated it all the more as he watched Sero's animated retelling of his story.

Kaminari's hackles rose a bit, though, when he sensed Bakugo's gaze on him. Shooting the explosive hero a quick glance, his suspicions were confirmed as Bakugo was staring at him openly over his beer glass. "I got something on my face?" Kaminari questioned. Bakugo snorted at the question, as if it was beneath him to answer.

' _OK, Mr. Snooty, no need to be rude.'_ Kaminari just brushed it off, chalking it up to Bakugo just being Bakugo.

"What can I get you fellas?" Their raven-haired waitress arrived, sending them all a rather welcoming smile. The four young men gave their orders promptly, eager to get some substance into their stomachs along with the alcohol. As the rather busty waitress turned away to deliver their orders to the kitchen, Kaminari and Sero couldn't help but admire her as she walked away from the table.

Bakugo let out a disgusted noise at their antics. "Can you be any more fucking obvious?"

Sero laughed off Bakugo's comment. "Oh, come on, Bakugo! Even you gotta admit she was hot! I'm just a young single man who is looking for his lady luck!"

"Pfft," Kaminari gave Sero a friendly shove, "You're asking for sympathy from the wrong guy, Sero! Bakugo's never checked out a woman's ass before!"

Kirishima placed his free elbow on the table and rested his chin on his hand. Looks like the ribbing was starting pretty early tonight. Hey, at least it wasn't directed at him this time. "Oh, I don't know. Katsuki can be pretty obvious when he wants to be."

Kaminari cringed, "Ok, ew. I don't want to know about how Bakugo checks you out, Kirishima."

"Homophobic much?" Sero snickered.

"Nah, just Bakugo-phobic!"

"Right back at you, Pikachu," Bakugo sneered a little more vehemently than was necessary for the conversation. Kaminari paused for a moment at the bile that was subtly thrown his way. Bakugo was being a little too prickly…

"Aw, dude," Kaminari tried to smooth over the rising tension coming from the blond. "You know I love you! It just so happens the only detailed sex life I'm interested in is my own!"

Bakugo snorted and took another swig of his beer. "Not from what I hear." Kaminari's smirk faltered at the comment; Bakugo was definitely trying to insult him.

The others must not have heard it, though, because Sero just continued the group banter. "We get it, this side of the table isn't getting laid on the regular-"

"Speak for yourself, man." Kaminari recovered from Bakugo's dig and smirked at Sero.

"Fine, since lonely me is the only one without any regular ass," Sero playfully shoved Kaminari's shoulder. "Let me have this! That waitress was cute! And who knows...maybe she's into tall, dark, and-"

"Awkward?" Both Kirishima and Kaminari interrupted Sero with a laugh. The tape hero glowered at the two.

"Just for that, neither of you are invited to my wedding!"

Kaminari shrugged it off with a 'fine by me' right as Kirishima raised his and Bakugo's intertwined hands. "I'm Katsuki's plus one. Try harder."

Sero groaned, hating his friends' incessant comebacks. Kaminari, though, bounced in his seat like a kid just shown birthday cake. "I should've thought of that! I'll be someone's plus one!"

"Gotta have a girlfriend for that, Pikachu," Bakugo waved off his childish antics, silently wondering where their food was.

Kaminari clutched at his heart in mock offense, "I can get a girlfriend! But why would I force that kind of commitment just for Sero's imaginary wedding?" Ignoring Sero's indignant 'hey!' Kaminari continued. "I'll just be Jiro's plus one. She's helped me get into places before, anyway."

Sero and Kirishima just laughed at his logic, but Bakugo just growled at him. "So you're just gonna leave Jiro's partner high and dry?"

Kaminari gave him a confused look. "I...what? Jiro doesn't have a partner, dude. Besides, she's let me tag along before-"

"Just seems fucking selfish to me. What if she got back with tail-boy? He won't appreciate getting shoved aside for your weird attachment."

Kaminari balked at Bakugo. Where had that even come from? "Dude, it's just a joke. It's not even like Sero can score a date with that girl, much less marry her." He shoved Sero away at the man's protest.

Bakugo leaned back in his seat, claws fully out now. Subtlety be damned. "I just don't see why you wouldn't take the invisible bitch. We all know you fucked the night of the reunion. Made it pretty fucking obvious that even classmates aren't safe from your 'reputation'."

"Wait, this is about me sleeping with Hagakure?" Kaminari was baffled, "Why the fuck do you even care who I sleep with!?"

"I don't," Bakugo sneered, "But you keep dragging your shit into our lives. It's bad enough you've dragged our agencies through the fucking ringer with your fucking dick, but now you're starting to make your way through our classmates?"

Kaminari leaned forward and the room's energy shifted with a slight electrical charge. "I don't see how what I do is any of your business? Everything I do is consensual, you piece of shit." Bakugo snorted at that. "It's true! You think I'm some damn rapist?"

"I never fucking said that!"

"The what the fuck _are_ you saying?" Kaminari stood slowly, "Because, again, what I do is none of your fucking business. Or are you just fucking jealous?"

Bakugo howled out a dark laugh and stood as well, never letting go of Kirishima's hand. "Jealous? Of your STD-ridden dick? Don't make me sick. Eijiro's got you beat, you fucker." A hushed 'why you gotta throw me into this' could be heard from Kirishima as he covered his face in humiliation. Sero stood too, trying to assuage the situation that had escalated out of nowhere. Ignoring him, though, Bakugo continued. "I want to know why you have to drag the girls we know down with you? Bad enough you're sleeping your way to the fucking top, but now you have to fucking hit-it-and-quit-it with your friends too? No hole safe from you, huh?"

"Bakugo!" Sero was appalled. "That was out of line!"

"No better than how he's fucking up his friendships left and right because he can't keep it in his pants," Bakugo huffed, "I swear, if I didn't know you were straight as a fucking ruler, I'd have to kick your ass as a warning to stay away from Eijiro, too!"

"Oh my god, Katsuki!" Kirishima's face was as red as his hair now. Standing up and throwing some money down to pay for everything, he pulled Bakugo away from the table by their laced hands. "That is _enough_!" Bakugo visibly relaxed his shoulders and took a minute step away from the table and closer to Kirishima. He never took his eyes off of Kaminari, though. "Sorry, Sero, we'll try this again when Bakugo isn't so hostile." Kirishima glared at Bakugo as he pulled him out of the restaurant. What was wrong with him?

Kirishima was silently seething at Bakugo's behavior as they got into their car. Keeping his irritation in check, he pulled out of the parking lot and towards their apartment. If he seemingly ignored Bakugo the entire time, then so be it.

Thankfully, after so many minutes of quiet, Bakugo broke the tension first knowing it would help alleviate Kirishima's now foul mood. "...apparently tail-boy broke up with Jiro because of him." Kirishima turned to him from looking at the road in shock. "Dude thought she was fucking Pikachu on the side."

Kirishima's mouth gaped open for a second before he recovered and turned back to looking at the road. "How do you even know that? You're not exactly the one I would say is up on the latest gossip, babe."

Bakugo snorted, not disagreeing with Kirishima. He actively avoided social drama and all of UA High knew it. "From the horse's mouth, of course. Jiro came over a couple weeks ago crying about it."

"...wait," Kirishima took a second to digest this new information, "Jiro talked you about that? Damn...she must be pretty beat up about it." Pulling the car into the parking structure under their apartment complex, Kirishima waited for Bakugo to exit. They continued their conversation on the way up to their home.

"It's a fucking stupid rumor, Ei. Jiro's a bitch, but she wouldn't do that shit. Fucking Ojiro's a piece of shit for even believing that." Bakugo huffed as they entered their apartment. He threw himself on the couch after removing his shoes at the entryway. "How fucking weak do you gotta be to give up on her because of some work stress and baseless rumors, anyway?"

Kirishima chuckled as he sat next to Bakugo. Almost immediately, the explosive hero laid his head in Kirishima's lap. "Not everyone is as blunt as you, Katsuki. Besides, you act like it's always easy." He flicked Bakugo's nose when the man huffed indignantly at him. "I'm serious, babe. You don't know how they were behind closed doors. I'm just glad Jiro told you about it."

Bakugo looked up at Kirishima, "So you're no longer pissed about me grilling Pikachu?"

"You had the right as Jiro's friend," Kirishima smiled down at him a little too sweetly, "But you're still going to apologize to Sero for causing a scene." Bakugo groaned, not liking the idea at all. "Oh, and you're sleeping here-" Kirishima motioned to the couch they sat on "-until you do so, you big baby."

Now Bakugo definitely remembered why he seriously hated getting involved in social drama.


End file.
